Improvement in revolving fire-arms



2 fie et s sheet 1.. W. H. BELL. Revolving Fire-Arm.

No. 223,101. I Patented Dec. 30', i879.

' I 2Sheets-$heet 2. W. H. BELL.

Revolving Fire-Arm.

No. 223,101. Patented Dec. 30,1879.

(UNI S A E PA ENT; OFFICE. 1

WILL AM H. BELL, or BALTIMORE, MARYLAND. I

IMPROVEME'NTIN REVOLVING FIRE-A MS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 223 ,l0l, datedDecember 30, 1879; application filed October 23, 1879.-

. 0 all whom it may concern I Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. BELL, of

' Baltimore, in the countyof Baltimore and ments in devices forautomatically ejecting the empty shells from that class of revolvingfirearms in which the cylinder is loaded from the .breech.-

Prior. to my invention many devices and contrivances have beensuggestedforextracting shells from breech-loading revolvers, someautomatic and others by hand. In most of them, however, the whole numberof shells are ejected or partially ejected at once and just prior toreloading, and this result is generally accomplished at the time thatthe arm is broken to v reload. Where the spring-plunger is used to Qsuccessively eject the shells the cylinder must be rotatedto bring eachchainberinto alignment, and it frequently happens that the explosion ofa shellcauses the plunger to spring or jump into a chamber, and thusprevent the rotation of the cylinder. There-are sundry other deviceswith which I am familiar, but none, so far as I am aware, embodyingthepeculiarity of construction and operation of my improvement, theobject of which is to automatically and fully eject each shell aninstant of time prior to the discharge of the succeeding one, andthrough themedium of the main-- spring that operates the hammer; andwith; these ends in view my invention consists of a 'retractor adaptedto take hold'of the rim of the fshellhand operated by the mainspring;

through the mediumof the" hammer, .duringi the descent of the same, aswillbe herein after; more fully set'forth. 1

In order that those skilled ma fully'understand the construction andoperationof m improved retractor, I will proceedto describe the samemore in detail, referring by letters to' the accompanying drawings, inwhich- Figure l is a side elevation of a revolver with my improvedretractor secured in position on the outside .Fig. 2, a similar view,with the 1 guard broken away to expose the retractor in the actof'ejecting shell, and with the pin on the hammer in section Fig. 3,arear view of the cylinder, showing one form of a groove or channel inwhich the hook end of the retractor moves; Fig. 4, a rearview of the re-.volver, showing the means for rendering the retractor inoperative whendesired; Fig. 5, detail views of the retractor without any pawl orclick; Fig. 6, a side view of the pawl or click and the same attached tothe retractor.

Fig. 7 is a perspective viewof the rock-shaft and thumb-piece by meansof which the retractor is renderedQinoperative when desired. 7 Fig.8 isa side and rear view of the hammer,

showing the pin by means of which the re.-

tractor is operated; Fig. 9, a side elevationof the rear portion of arevolver with my improved retractor arranged inside; Fig. 1.0, an

inside view of the side plate with retractorsecured in position; Fig.11-, a rear sectional and side elevation of a cylinder with a modifiedform of groove or channel for the hook of the retractor to travel in,and Figs. 12, I13, and 14 side viewsof modifications of means forvibratingthe retractor.

Similar letters indicate like parts in the several figures.

A is the retractor, which may be struckup i or formed from a singlepiece, with its upper end terminating in a book, a, adapted to engagethe rim of the shell. This retractor is pivoted, by a screw orotherwise, to the side plate ofthe lock-frame. A pawl, A ,is arrangedbetween the retractorAand the said side plate,-

being pivoted near the top to the retractor, as

clearly shown, and is furnished with a spring,

a, the free end of which'lies within a groove 'or under a 'shoulder inthe upper end of the retractor, so that it shall act to throw thepawlre'arward, asseen at Fig. 6. i

'1 "The lower portion of the retractor, below its center of motion, isprojected forward to form a bearing-for the end of a spring, F, whichthrows the hook end of the retractor into its groove in the rear end ofthe cylinder as soon as the pawl A! is released.

When arranged on the outside, as shown at Figs. 1 and 2, the lock-plateis cut through,

' pin, G, one side of which is bevcled or cut of time, which maybe'-'deemed'necessary'. The

' permit the ejectment of the armD, which is 7 so located that when theretractor is pulled erative position, so that the cylinder B may bewhich the hook at of the retractor travels, as v seen at Fig. 3,.orwhich may be formed with a may be forced into position in loading. Thison the inside of the lock-frame, as to move in now' explain itsoperation.

forming asegmental channel, 0, through which projects a pin or arm, 0,arranged on'th'e side of the hammer, as clearly shown, which pin or armis designed to take hold of the hook or shoulder formed in the upperedge of the lower end of the pawl A, to pull the same down until it isreleased by having its lower curved edge come in contact with a trippingscrew or away, as seen in cross-section at Fig. 2, so that by turning oradjusting said screw it may be made to trip the pawl A atvariableperiods pin 0 is beveled, as seen at c, toaid in tripping the pawl.

D is a thumb piece or lever on the rear end of a rock-shaft, having aradial arm, D, at'or near its forward end. This rock-shaft is arrangedlongitudinally under the retractor, insidethe lock frame, which is cutor slotted to sufliciently far back to be out of the way of the cylinderthe arm D may beforced out in front of the retractor, and hold it in aninopcharged and the shells exploded without using the retractor,'if sodesired.

0 represents the shells, and e the chambers, of the cylinder, betweenwhich is formed a series of connecting grooves or channels, b, in

continuous groove surrounding the cylinder, as shown at Fig. 11.

E is the central hole and shaft, by which the chambers are secured inposition in the usual manner."

H is a channel or groove through which the shells are ejected, andthrough which they channel is preferably slightly turned outwardly atits rear end, to deflect the shells to one side as they are thrown outby the ejector; and I is a guard.

The pin 0 on the face of the hammer may be so arranged, when theretractor is placed and out to catch into its seat in the pawl A; orthepawl and retractor may be arranged in though I prefer the arrangementshown at Having described the construction and ari'angement 'of myimproved retractor, I will Suppose the cylinder fully charged and theweapon ready .for use, as seen at Fig. 1. The

hammer is drawn back and the lever D turned up, throwing out the arm D"on the rock-shaft to hold the retractor inactive. The trigger is pulledand cartridge No.1 is exploded. The

the exploded chamber in front of the retractori The leverD is now turneddown, and the book a, by the action of the spring F. is thrown into thegroove b in the cylinder, and travels behind the rim of the explodedshell just previous tothe descent of the hammer. As the hammer descendsthe pin 0, actingin the shoulder or notch a in the pawl A, pulls theretractor back, and its hook a draws the exploded shell from its chamberand ejects it just before the pointof the hammer'strikesthe next shell,just' previous to which time, also, the trip G has released the pawl,and the hook a flies back into the groove 1), so that as the cylinder isrotated by again raising the hammer the next exploded shell is carriedaround, so as to overlie the said hook.

The raising of the hammer each time, it will I be observed, brings thepin 0 into position within the shoulder in the pawl. The motions are sotimed that the hammer obtains a slight momentum before the pin 0 beginsto pull on the pawl A.

From the foregoing it will .be seen that I employ the force of themainspring toretract the explodedshells, and that they are retracted aninstant of time prior to the explosion of the next succeeding one, sothat by no accident can an exploded shell be left remaining in a chamberto become corroded therein.

The retractor may be provided with a knob, d, or other suitable device,bywhich it may be operated by hand without cocking and uncocking theweapon.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is- I 1. Incombination with the vibratory retractor A, the rock shaft provided withthe lever D and radial arm D, arranged, as described, to hold theretractor inoperative, as set forth.

2.. The retractor A and pawl A, pivoted together, and the latter pivotedto the frame, as described, in combination with the spring F, forthrowingthe hook end of the retra-ctor in position, and the pin 0 on thehammer, adapted to vibrate the retractor during the descent of thehammer, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination with the extractor A and the pawl A, formed with theshoulder or notch a and curved lower portion, the pin 0 and trip deviceG, constructed as described, and for thepu-rpose set forth.

Witness my hand and seal.

, WILLIAM BELL.- n 8.] In presence of' WM. 0. Moln'rnm,

F. W. SMITH, Jr.

